That's the piper every team pays, though. If Flacco goes on and decides to stop playing at a Pro level, it's going to hurt the Ravens.

Don't get it twisted, though. Most of us would prefer if we didn't do this song and dance every year. But it is what it is. The rumors of our roster demise are, however, always greatly exaggerated._________________

In Redball I Trust!The price of progress is trusting the process.
Heart. Leadership. Passion. Will.

Flacco - We only have a few big contracts on the books (sans Austin, who will be gone soon). Romo - who is getting market value for the next 4 years. Ware, who could be overpaid. And Lee, who is the cornerstone of our Def and just signed.

We are fine. We have some talented players, hence we will be tight against the cap. Most talented teams are.

Yes, you only have those now. But you will also have to re-sign some younger guys to more lucrative deals than their rookie ones or let them walk and hope to draft a replacement to step in and replicate their production right away (Dez, Tyron Smith, Murray, Bruce Carter specifically in the next 2 years). Dez will obviously be the huge one, Smith will get a big deal, Murray a pretty good sized one, Carter might be able to be had for a favorable amount, etc. Not to mention stop-gap veterans to fill in for guys walking in FA/retiring/etc.

Look, I'm not saying it's not going to work -- it certainly could. But, it's an extremely risky play, which relies on everything working out just right and the odds of that happening are very, very small. We heard the same types of arguments from Jets fans just 3 years ago and it all fell apart in front of their eyes. Unfortunately for the Cowboys, I see it falling apart the same, potentially even worse due to the reason you said -- you don't have big contracts you can shed and get similar production from much cheaper guys; you have big contracts to high contributors who if purged will suffer a drop off in production._________________

That's the piper every team pays, though. If Flacco goes on and decides to stop playing at a Pro level, it's going to hurt the Ravens.

No doubt -- it's the reason why his contract is set up the way it is. After 3 years, when he salary cap hit balloons, we have a critical decision to make. Either he's earned his keep and we re-structure, push his money into the future and bank on him continuing his play (the boat the Cowboys are in with Romo and will be getting deeper into with him if they continue to restructure), or we release Flacco, take a big cap hit, and move on.

The difference here is that the Cowboys are banking on a much older guy, they are already in deeper, and on top of that, they are doing the same with Ware. And Witten to a lesser extent.

Restructuring contracts is always a risky play and relies on gambling correctly._________________

The QB mega-contracts aren't all that worrisome, tbh. Romo, as with the other guys who have gotten those big money deals, is fairly likely to maintain a level of play worthy of remaining as a competitive starting QB into his mid-to-late 30's, at which point you can more seamlessly wind down the contract late-on after a couple of restructures. The Pats with Brady have already provided the blueprint on that.

It's non-QB's who I generally think are more dangerous restructures. With Dallas, it's Ware that intrigues me the most. Yes, they can evaporate much of his huge cap hit in 2014 by restructuring his contract, but pushing money into later years is a bit more of a gamble when you're doing so with a players who play positions where your body is more likely to break down quicker and swift regression is a glaring possibility. Ware's on the wrong side of 30 and battling injury troubles for the 2nd straight year, so if they're going to re-do his deal to give him another fat signing bonus to avoid paying him a high salary next year, that's the sort of deal that can be problematic later on._________________

Last edited by BaltimoreTerp on Mon Oct 21, 2013 5:19 pm; edited 1 time in total

I would love nothing more than to see his HOF career end with Dallas, but I am losing the intellectual battle on him with each passing game. His health, production, and cost are all becoming a factor going forward._________________

In Redball I Trust!The price of progress is trusting the process.
Heart. Leadership. Passion. Will.

I would love nothing more than to see his HOF career end with Dallas, but I am losing the intellectual battle on him with each passing game. His health, production, and cost are all becoming a factor going forward.

Probably a goner after next season. They'll have gotten won helluva player thru his prime. The last two years of Romo's contract are basically team options with no 'dead money' so they'll probably push back some guaranteed money to 2016+..._________________The Rebuild Has Begun...